Cyprus signed an agreement worth 600 million euros ($742 million) with the Zenon Consortium to develop port facilities in Larnaca, in the southeast.

The group, which includes French builder Bouygues Batiment International, Louis Plc, the largest tourism company in Greece and Cyprus, and Costa Crociere Spa, an Italian cruise unit of Carnival Corp, will construct a passenger terminal, a pier and a marina for as many as 1,000 boats, as well as commercial and residential properties, the Cypriot government said in a statement on its press office website.

Zenon will manage the facilities, which will be built in three phases, for 35 years, after which their ownership will revert to the state, according to the statement.

The aim is to make Larnaca the main Cypriot port able to handle large cruise ships while also having the potential to serve cargo vessels.

Construction is scheduled to begin early in 2013, with completion of the first phase within three years.

[Bloomberg]